Port Adelaide Football Club (SANFL)
The Port Adelaide Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club based in Alberton, Port Adelaide, South Australia. The club's senior team plays in the Australian Football League (AFL), whilst its reserves and development teams compete in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL).3 Port Adelaide is the oldest professional football club in South Australia and the fifth-oldest club in the AFL. Since the club's first game on 24 May 1870, the club has won 36 South Australian league premierships, including six in a row. The club also won the Champions of Australia competition on a record four occasions.45 In 1997, the club joined the Australian Football League as the only pre-existing non-Victorian club—and subsequently added the 2004 AFL premiership to its achievements.he Port Adelaide Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club based in Alberton, Port Adelaide, South Australia. The club's senior team plays in the Australian Football League (AFL), whilst its reserves and development teams compete in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL).3 Club history Main article: History of the Port Adelaide Football Club Inaugural club president John Hart, Jr.. 1870–1876: Formation years By the late 1860s Port Adelaide's river traffic was growing significantly causing John Rann, Mr. Leicester and Mr. Ireland to form a sporting club to benefit local wharf workers.6 The Port Adelaide Football Club was established on 12 May 1870 as part of a joint Australian football and cricket club with the first training session taking place two days later.7 It played its first match against a team called the "Young Australians" on 24 May 1870 at inaugural club president John Hart's family property in Glanville. Football in South Australia at this stage was yet to be organised by a single body and as a result there were several sets of rules in use across the state. 1877–1889: SAFA founder, Alberton Oval and first premiership In 1877 Port Adelaide joined seven other clubs to form the South Australian Football Association (SAFA), the first league of its type in Australia.8 It competed its first few seasons wearing magenta guernseys and white shorts.9 In 1878 the club hosted its first game against the recently established Norwood Football Club with the visitors winning 1-0. A rivalry between these clubs would soon develop into one of the fiercest in Australian sport (See Port Adelaide-Norwood SANFL rivalry).10 Left: Junior Port Adelaide players at Alberton Oval in 1880, the first year the ground was used by the club for football. Right: Port Adelaide's first premiership team from the 1884 season. In 1880 the club moved to Alberton Oval. In 1881 the club played an interstate team for the first time against Carlton at Adelaide Oval. Later that year the club travelled to Victoria and played its first game outside South Australia against Sale.11 During the 1882 season Port Adelaide overcame Norwood for the first time after nine previous attempts winning by 1 goal at Adelaide Oval. On 2 July 1883 Port Adelaide played its first game at the MCG against Melbourne. 12In 1884 Port Adelaide won its first SAFA premiership, ending Norwood's run of six premierships. On 25 May 1885, Port Adelaide played at the MCG against South Melbourne, drawing with the eventual VFA premiers in front of 10,000 spectators.13 In 1887 immense interest led into the round 8 meeting against Norwood as the previous two matches between the clubs resulted in draws. Norwood won in front of a then-record 11,000 spectators at Adelaide Oval.14 During 1889 the club played against the Richmond at Punt Road, with Port prevailing by a goal.15 The 1889 SAFA season ended with Port Adelaide and Norwood equal top, leading to the staging of Australia's first grand final. Norwood went on to defeat Port Adelaide by two goals. 1890–1901: First national success and last wooden spoon Left: Harry Phillips won the clubs best and fairest in 1888, 1891, 1892 and 1893. Right: Port fan Willy Whicker wearing a striped magenta guernsey used by the club until dye became too costly (1883-1901). In 1890 Port Adelaide won its second SAFA premiership and would go on to be crowned "Champions of Australia" for the first time after defeating VFA premiers South Melbourne. In 1891 the club defeated Fitzroy at Adelaide Oval with Indigenous Australian Harry Hewitt playing for Port Adelaide.16 During the 1890s Australia was affected by a severe depression and many players were forced to move interstate to find work translating into poor on field results. By 1896, the club was in crisis and finished last causing the clubs committee to meet with the aim of revitalising the club. Historian John Devaney suggested that there was a "conscious and deliberate cultivation by both the committee and the team's on field leaders of a revitalised club spirit, whereby playing for Port Adelaide became a genuine source of pride".17 It had immediate results and in 1897 Port Adelaide won a third premiership finishing the season with a record of 14-2-1 with a scoring record two and a half times its conceded total. This is one of only four occurrences since 1877 that the team that finished last won a premiership the following year. Stan Malin won Port Adelaide's first Magarey Medal in 1899. During the 19th century the club had nicknames including the Cockledivers, the Seaside Men, the Seasiders and the Magentas. In 1900, Port finished bottom in the six-team competition, which it has not done in any senior league since. 1902–1915: Black and white and the pre-war invinciblesedit Left: Port Adelaide adopted the black and white "Wharf Pylon" guernsey and the Magpie emblem in 1902. Right: Port Adelaide's 1903 premiership team were the first to win a Grand Final in the "Wharf Pylon" guernsey. In 1902, Port Adelaide took the field in black and white guernseys for the first time after it was having trouble finding dyes that would last for its blue and magenta guernseys.18 The first year in the new guernsey would be a controversial year for the club. After finishing the 1902 season on top of the ladder was disqualified from a game with South Adelaide after disputing the use of an unaccredited umpire.19 The 1902 SAFA premiership would subsequently be awarded to North Adelaide after they defeated South Adelaide in the Grand Final a week later.20 Port Adelaide offered to play North Adelaide in a premiership deciding match, but the association refused.21 The first premiership after the dispute came the following year when Port Adelaide defeated South Adelaide 6.6 (42) to 5.5 (35) in the 1903 SAFA Challenge Final. A further premiership came in 1906 when Port defeated North Adelaide 8.12 (60) to 5.9 (39) in the year's Grand Final. During the early stages of the 1907 season, Port Adelaide travelled to Sydney to play a combination of the cities best players. The game was marketed as 'Port Adelaide vs. Sydney' with the harbour city side taking the honours 8.9 (57) to 5.14 (44).22 Port Adelaide won the SAFL premiership in 1910 defeating Sturt 8.12 (60) to 5.11 (41) in the Grand Final. The club would go on to defeat Collingwood for the 1910 Championship of Australia title. During the 1910 post season, seeking revenge for their loss the year before, Port Adelaide travelled to Western Australia and beat East Fremantle by 12 points. To conclude the trip Port Adelaide played a combination of some of the WAFL's best players and achieved a remarkable victory scoring 6.17 (53) to 6.12 (48), with Sampson Hosking named best on ground.24 Along with beating the premiers from South Australia, Victoria and Western Australia in 1910, Port Adelaide also invited North Broken Hill, the premier team of New South Wales, to a game at Adelaide Oval. Port Would win this game 14.20 (104) to 5.5 (35).25 Left: Club legend Harold Oliver taking a mark in the 1914 SAFL Semi Finalagainst Sturt at Adelaide Oval. Right: Port Adelaide's undefeated 1914 SAFL premiers and Champions of Australia team. The following two seasons for Port Adelaide would be frustrating dropping only one game during the 1911 minor round and going undefeated the following year in 1912 only to be knocked out of contention by West Adelaide both times, the second of these encounters in front of a pre war South Australian record crowd of 28,500. During the 1912 preseason, Port Adelaide travelled to Tasmania and took on a combination of players from various Tasmanian Football League (TFL) sides. The game would prove to be very competitive with Port Adelaide defeating the TFL combination 7.13 (55) to 6.6 (42).26 During the 1913 preseason, Port Adelaide travelled back to Western Australia to play East Fremantle again with the local side winning for a second time 6.6 (42) to 4.12 (36). Despite this inauspicious preseason the club would break through in 1913, dropping only two games during the minor round and eventually defeating North Adelaide 7.12 (54) to 5.10 (40) for the SAFL premiership and Fitzroy 13.16 (94) to 4.7 (31) for the 1913 Championship of Australia. The 1914 Port Adelaide Football Club season is widely regarded as one of the best in Australian rules football history. It won all its pre season matches, won all fourteen SAFL games by an average margin of 49 points and the 1914 SAFL Grand Final where it held North Adelaide to a single goal for the match 13.15 (93) to 1.8 (14). The club would then meet VFL premiers Carlton on Adelaide Oval, defeating the Victorian club by 34 points to claim a record fourth Championship of Australia. At the end of 1914 season a combined team from the six other SAFL clubs played Port Adelaide and lost to the subsequently dubbed "Invincibles" by 58 points.28 Key players from this team are Harold Oliver, Angelo Congear and Sampson Hosking who all share the unique distinction of playing in three Championships of Australia together as well all taking part in South Australia's first victorious Australian National Football Carnival in 1911.29 1919–1949: Two World Wars, the Great Depression and post war struggles Port Adelaide players hold up their 1921 SAFL premiership flag During World War I the club lost three players—William Boon, Joseph Watson and Albert Chaplin—to the war. A scaled-back competition referred to as the 'Patriotic League' was organised during wartime in which Port Adelaide won the 1916 and 1917 instalments. After World War I, Harold Oliver, arguably the state's best player, was close to retiring from league football playing only 1 game in 1919 and 8 in 1920. However keen supporters of the club hoping to replicate its pre-war success raised funds and bought him a motorbike so he could commute from his farm in Berri for the 1921 season.30 Oliver would captain the club to the 1921 premiership, winning his fourth in the process. In 1922 after playing only 5 league matches for the season his football career came to an end due to commitments regarding his farm and disputes regarding game compensation. His contract termination meant he was paid ₤76 of ₤100 pounds for the season making him one of the highest-paid footballers of the era.31 At the end of the 1922 SAFA season, Port Adelaide travelled to Sydney and played a combined New South Wales side on the Sydney Cricket Groundwinning the match.32 In following seasons most of Port Adelaide's champion players from before the war started to retire and the club's performances declined.33 As was the case in the 1890s, the depression of the early 1930s hit the club hard with players moving interstate to secure employment.33 Bob Quinn chaired off after the 1939 Grand Final win By the late 1930s, the economy and Port Adelaide's form both recovered and after two narrow grand final losses in 1934 and 1935 the club won premierships in 1936, 1937 and 1939. During 1939, Bob Quinn, in his third year as a player for the club, coached the team to a Grand Final win over West Torrens. Many Port Adelaide players also enlisted for military service during this time.34 In 1941 Port Adelaide suffered its first player casualties from war since World War I with Lloyd Rudd and Jack Wade both killed on the Allies' front in France. Four more players would be killed through the war: Maxwell Carmichael, George Quinn, Christopher Johnston and Halcombe Brock.3536 Just as had happened in 1914, the league was being hit hard by player losses in World War II. Due to a lack of able men the league's eight teams were reduced to four with Port Adelaide merging with nearby West Torrens from 1942 to 1944. The joint club would play in all three Grand Finals during this period, winning the 1942 instalment but losing the 1943 and 1944 editions to the Norwood-North Adelaide combination. Normal competition resumed in 1945. After finishing his military service Haydn Bunton Sr., now a triple Brownlow and Sandover medallist, joined the club for his final season.38 However, despite this addition Port Adelaide was unable to regain its pre-war success and played in only one grand final for the rest of the 1940s. 1950–1973: Fos Williams era and Jack Oatey rivalryedit At the end of the 1949, having missed two finals series in a row, the Port Adelaide Football Club had become desperate to improve its on-field performances. The club's committee subsequently sought out a coach that could win the club its next premiership. Eventually a decision was made which would influence the next 50 years of the Port Adelaide Football Club with Foster Neil Williams, a brilliant rover from West Adelaide, being appointed captain-coach of the club. Williams brought to the club a new coaching style based on success at any cost which was succinctly encapsulated in the legendary club creed he eventually wrote in 1962. During his second season as coach in 1951, Williams led Port to their first official premiership (excluding World War II competition) for 9 seasons, defeating North Adelaide by 11 points. At the end of the 1951 season the VFL premiers Geelong visited South Australia to play the local premiers Port Adelaide on Adelaide Oval. Geelong won the match 8.14 (62) to 6.18 (54) in front of 25,000 people.39 Port Adelaide would make the Grand Final again in 1953 against local rivals West Torrens in what would be the Eagles last appearance before merging with Woodville. West Torrens would disappoint Port Adelaide, winning the 1953 premiership by 7 points. Port Adelaide's run of disappointment from the 1952 and 1953 seasons would prove to be short lived with the club subsequently going on to win a national record six Grand Finals in a row from 1954 to 1959. The club had a win-loss-draw record of 105-16-1 (86%) over the six-year period. During the 1950s Port Adelaide and Melbourne, often the premiers of South Australian and Victorian leagues, played exhibition matches at Norwood Oval. The most notable game was the 1955 match with an estimated crowd of 23,000. The game being a thriller going down to the last 15 seconds with Frank Adams kicking a behind and sealing the game 9.11 (65) to 9.10 (64) in favour of Norm Smith's demons.4041 The following year Melbourne was full of praise for their cross border challenger with those in the Demons camp agreeing that "Port Adelaide could take their place in the V.F.L. competition and do themselves credit".42 Geof Motley took over the captain-coaching role at the club in 1959 when Williams left to take a break from the game. That year the club won the premiership setting a national record of sixth consecutive Grand Final victories. Port Adelaide's hope of winning 7 consecutive premierships was brought to an end in the 1960 preliminary final when Norwood won by 27 points. For the following two seasons Port Adelaide would finish third. Fos Williams returned in 1962 and Port Adelaide won three of the next four premierships taking his personal tally to nine and the clubs record to 10 of the last 15 premierships. The 1965 premiership, the last that Williams coached, was played in front of 62,543 people, the largest ever crowd at Adelaide Oval. In that game Port Adelaide defeat Sturt by 3 points. After the 1965 Grand Final, Port Adelaide would be frustrated by the dominance of Sturt, which won seven premierships over this period under the leadership of Jack Oatey. In all, despite playing in 6 of the next 10 grand finals, Port Adelaide would fail to win a premiership until 1977. 1974–1998: John Cahill, SANFL domination and AFL entryedit One of Port Adelaide's finest players during the Fos Williams era was John Cahill. He eventually became William's protégé and ultimately took over as coach in 1974. In 1975 a dispute between the Port Adelaide City Council and the SANFL over the use of Alberton Oval forced Port Adelaide to move its home matches to Adelaide Oval for two seasons. In 1976 Cahill would subsequently take Port Adelaide to its first Grand Final under his leadership against Sturt with an official attendance of 66,897, the record for football in South Australia. The actual crowd was estimated at 80,000, much bigger than the official figure as Football Park ran out of tickets early and were forced to shut the gates 90 minutes before the bounce as people were being crushed on entry.44 Sturt won in an upset by 41 points. In 1977 the dispute regarding Alberton Oval was resolved and the club moved back to its home ground and won that years premiership breaking an 11-year drought which at the time was Port Adelaide longest since competing in an organised football competition. The 1980 season was Port Adelaide's most dominant since 1914. All SANFL divisions of the club made finals with both the league and reserve sides winning their respective premierships. Russell Ebert won his record 4th Magarey Medal. Tim Evans set the then-league goal kicking record of 146 goals in a season. The club provided seven players to the state league team (Ebert, Evans, Cunningham, Phillips, Williams, Giles and Faletic). The club set a new record for most points scored during the whole season at 3,421 whilst also having the best defence conceding only 1,851 points. Overall Port Adelaide lost 2 games from 24 for the year. Russell Ebert became coach in 1983 when Cahill left to coach Collingwood for two seasons. This period saw the club fail to reach the grand final. The period also marked the rise of the VFL as Australia's premier football competition. Many SANFL players were moving to the VFL larger salaries. In 1982 the SANFL, Norwood and East Perth all approached the VFL in regards to entering the league. All were ignored at the time.47 Port Adelaide's report from 1982 showed that the failure of these attempts impacted the understanding of its future.48 From this point onwards the club restructured in regards to economics, public relations and on-field performance for an attempt to enter the league. There was genuine feeling that failure to do this would result in the club ceasing to exist in the future.47 Talk of a side from South Australia entering the VFL was fast tracked in 1987 when a team from Western Australia, the West Coast Eagles, and a team from Brisbane, the Brisbane Bears joined the VFL. South Australia was left out as the only mainland state without a team. John Cahill returned as coach for the 1988 season. During that year, one of Fos Williams sons, Anthony, was tragically killed in a building accident. The following day the club played against Norwood and managed to overcome an early deficit to win the emotional charged game. The club would go on to win the 1988 premiership. In 1989 seven out of ten SANFL clubs were recording losses and the combined income of the SANFL and WAFL had dropped to 40% of that of the VFL.49 During early 1990 the SANFL decided to wait three years before making any further decision in regards to fielding a South Australian side in the VFL until it could be done without negatively affecting football within the state. Frustrated with lack of progress, Port Adelaide were having secret negotiations in the town of Quorn for entry in 1991.50 From these discussions Port Adelaide Football Club accepted an invitation from the VFL to join what had now become the AFL. The AFL signed a Heads of Agreement with the club in expectation that Port would enter the competition in 1991, meaning the Port Adelaide Football Club would field two teams, one in the AFL and one in the SANFL. During the 1990 preseason Port Adelaide played a practice match against the Geelong at Football Park in front of 35,000 spectators with Gary Ablett Snr and Gavin Wanganeen prominent. When knowledge of Port Adelaide's negotiations to gain an AFL licence were made public, many in the SANFL saw it as an act of treachery. SANFL clubs urged Justice Olssen to make an injunction against the bid, which he agreed to.51 The AFL suggested to the SANFL that if they didn't want Port Adelaide to join the AFL, they could put forward a counter bid to enter a composite South Australian side into the AFL. After legal action from all parties, the AFL finally agreed to accept the SANFL's bid and the Adelaide Football Clubwas born.52 The fallout from the failed bid resulted in some calling for Port Adelaide to be expelled from the SANFL.52 However, Port Adelaide continued to compete and continued to dominate. When the Adelaide Crows entered the AFL, SANFL attendances dropped by 14% however Port Adelaide attendances increased by 13%.55 Supporters for Port Adelaide's AFL bid included Kevin Sheedy, Tom Hafey, Ron Barassi and David Parkin.56 In 1994, the AFL announced it would award a second AFL licence to a South Australian club. Present at the 1994 Grand Final was AFL CEO Ross Oakley and Alan Schwab who bore witness to the clubs come from behind win against Woodville-West Torrens.57 Left: Port Adelaide obtained an AFL licence on 9 December 1994 after winning the 1994 SANFL Grand Final. Right: Port Adelaide were still only known as the "Magpies" until the new moniker "Power" was announced live from the Adelaide Entertainment Center on 31 September 1995. During December 1994 Max Basher announced that Port Adelaide had won the tender for the second South Australian AFL licence.58 However a licence did not guarantee entry and although a target year of 1996 was set, this was reliant upon an existing AFL club folding or merging with another. In 1996, the cash-strapped Fitzroy announced it would merge with the Brisbane Bears to form the Brisbane Lions. A spot had finally opened and it was announced that in 1997, one year later than expected, Port Adelaide would enter the AFL. Once an entry date had been confirmed, the Port Adelaide Football Club set about forming a side fit for competition in the AFL. It was announced that existing Port Adelaide coach, John Cahill would make the transition to the AFL and Stephen Williams would take over the SANFL coaching role. Cahill then set about forming a group which would form the inaugural squad. Brownlow Medallist and 1990 Port Adelaide premiership player, Gavin Wanganeen was poached from Essendon and made captain of a team made up of six existing Port Adelaide players, two from the Adelaide Crows, seven players from other SANFL clubs and 14 recruits from interstate. Of the 35 players on Port Adelaide's inaugural AFL list 13 had played for the club before. The AFL's father son rule for the club was set at 200 games for players before 1997. This compared to only 100 for Victorian clubs. On 29 March 1997, Port Adelaide played its first AFL premiership match against Collingwood at the MCG, suffering a 79-point defeat. Port won its first AFL game in round 3 against Geelong, and defeated cross town rivals and eventual premiers Adelaide by 11 points in the first Showdown in round 4. At the conclusion of round 17, the side sat fifth – only one win and percentage off the top spot in what was an unusually close season – but it fell out of the finals after recording only a draw from its final five games. Port Adelaide finished its first season 9th, missing the finals on percentage behind Brisbane. The 1998 season was looking very similar to the previous year as they hovered around ninth position for most of the year and looked like a threat for finals after round 14; but they lost six of their last eight games to finish in 10th place, with a record of 9 wins, 12 los